My new shop is now live!  It is the culmination of a year of experimenting with ideas and a summer holiday of making.  These are the herb filled hanging cushions, 11x11cm, filled with lavender or citrus, or a blend of the two....

And these are the herbal heat pads.  They contain a sachet of lavender as well as a bag of pearl barley.  The entire cushion can be heated in the microwave and applied to tired muscles.

 

Now all I need to do is work on getting 'noticed'.  In the meantime, I'm carrying on with making stuff. At the moment I'm working on the Christmas range.  This includes hand-warmers with a hot-water bottle design, a relaxing eye mask, and more hanging herb cushions but with a Christmas theme! But right now I'm going to take a walk and enjoy the sunshine while it lasts...

 

 

We made it to Lincolnshire! I drove up, which was an achievement in itself as I haven't driven for more than 5 years and never in this country.  We've been here for nearly a week now and I've been making steady progress on the 'cushions' idea.  So far I've made:

• 13 corduroy cushion covers (12.5 x 12.5cm)
• 20 barley filled inner cushions
• 20 muslin squares shortly to be filled with lavender
• 5 flowery sachets with pink ribbon for hanging in wardrobe (11x11cm)
• 50 squares of calico fabric awaiting printing and to be made into more hanging sachets.

Having bought a load of lavender just before coming up here, my sister informed me that her friend has a garden full of the stuff, and that we can help ourselves to as much as we wanted!  So we did.  Here is a picture of the lavender that we picked, drying on a towel upstairs...

 

 

I haven't really researched the preparation process so I'm kind of glad that I've bought some that is already dried and prepared.  But we took some of the seeds and scattered them in a spare patch of soil in the garden, so perhaps next year I  will be able to fill the cushions with our own home grown lavender!  Here is one of my little helpers, my nephew Philip, sowing the seeds:

 



Toby, my son, has also been invaluable in his help.  Here he is weighing out the barley:

There's still plenty more to be done (I haven't even looked at the technical side of things, including getting this blogged noticed!)).  Tomorrow I will be printing calico squares for the 'citrus' range.  But for now, we are going to have a barbeque! 

Yes! It's summer holidays!!  And it's gonna be a  sweltering one...  Despite my apparent inactivity (my last blog was back in April!), my efforts have been gaining momentum over the last few weeks and I am fairly optimistic that by the end of the holidays I will have something to display in  my online  shop.  It will be with Folksy initially, and, all things going well, I will eventually set up my own website as well as approach retailers to see if they are interested in stocking my wares.

The name to look out for is 'Beneath the Mango Tree' ('Mango Tree' for short).  The main product line is a range of small hand-sized cushions featuring hand-printed designs and filled with aromatic herbs. One of my favourite designs is a very peaceful meditating Buddha. This one is filled with lavender for its 'sleep inducing' effect.  I  am also working on a citrus blend for a more 'uplifting' effect...

Other designs are inspired by nature including a cute dandelion based on a drawing by my son.  The pictures below show the transition from original sketch to completed cushion:

 

 

The above cushion is filled with pearl barley, as well as lavender - it can be warmed in the microwave and applied to tired muscles.

 

I've nearly gathered all the materials I need - fabrics, ribbons, inks, herbs; I've designed the logo; the label is on its way (courtesy of Etsy); I've registered my shop name; I've even been swotting up on SEO!  Next week I drive up to my sister's in Lincolnshire where we will spend the summer.  There I will set up my work shop, and, fingers crossed, I hope to be ready for business by the end of our stay!

 

 

Hello again.  Just a quick blog to keep you up-dated on what I have been up to so far this year...

I have come up with a couple of product ideas that I feel inspired by, and that are achievable in terms of both production method and sourcing of materials. 

The first is a small hand-sized aromatic herb cushion.  The designs are my own, based on images that are supposed to evoke a peaceful and restful state (meditating Buddha, lotus flower and so on).  Once I am satisfied with my design  (researched mainly from Pinterest and Google Image), I transfer it onto a linoleum block, then carve it out.  I then stamp the image onto fabric and set it using a heated iron.

Meditating Buddha

 

Lotus flower

 

 

Here are some of the prints.  The background effect is inspired by the artist Rothko! 

 

 

 

 

Here is one of the finished products (it just doesn't want to be rotated!)

 

 

 

The above cushion is filled with kaffir lime leaves, though I am currently in the process of researching different herbs for their aromatic effects.  I have been experiencing a lot of sleep difficulties recently so lavender will definitely be included in the range!  I am also looking to combine the herbs with fillings that can be heat activated (e.g. barely).  These can be applied to tired muscles or simply used to warm cold  hands.

 

The second product idea involves a different medium, polymer clay, but the same linoleum stamps.  These are applied to the clay (no ink), leaving an impression. After baking in the oven, they harden to form a clay tablet.  A loop of colourful ribbon transforms them into a hanging decoration.  When hung in front of a window, the sunlight shines through the image with very pleasing effect.  The only one I have made is still to be varnished so I don't want to display it just yet.  But here are the colourful slabs of clay that will shortly be transformed into decorative hanging ornaments...

 

 

 

That's the fun side of it all.  But in order for my business idea to take off, I'll have to become a bit more business 'savy'.  To this end, I have completed a short marketing course at Morley College.  I am also working my way through a book called "Etsypreneurship" by Jason Malinak; it seems to be offering sound advice (albeit a bit dry!) on matters such as book keeping and finances.  I've bought my  husband the book "How  to get to the Top of Google" (so far untouched I notice) - he'll be responsible for the technical side of things including search engine optimisation.

 

 

Targets

 

From now until the start of the school summer holidays, I will continue with the following:

• experimenting with techniques and designs for herb cushions and clay hanging decorations
• researching suppliers of raw materials (herbs, fabric, inks, ribbons, clay, varnish)
• learning about how to start a business (business plan, book keeping, taxes, marketing, legal considerations)

Over the  summer holidays, I plan to stay at my sister's house in Lincolnshire. While my son is busily playing with his cousins, I will be building up a stock of products to sell.

 

By the end of the summer holidays, I hope to have enough products to start up an online shop.  I've recently discovered that Folksy is the British version of Etsy, so it might  make more sense to start up on Folksy.

 

 

Anticipated difficulties

 

It is difficult for me to dedicate blocks of uninterrupted time to this venture.  This can affect my motivation.  Another potential set back is  recurring bouts of insomnia which knock me out and make it difficult for me to commit to a regular routine.

 

 

On the bright side

 

No doubt the plan will not go exactly according 'to plan', but at least I will enjoy the journey. I look forward to updating you on my developments in a few months time!